DEBT COLLECTORS ACT 114 OF 1998 - Justice Home

1 debt COLLECTORS ACT 114 OF 1998 [ASSENTED TO 19 NOVEMBER 1998] [DATE OF COMMENCEMENT: 7 FEBRUARY 2003] (Unless otherwise indicated) (English text signed by the President) as amended by Judicial Matters Amendment Act 22 of 2005 Judicial Matters Amendment Act 66 of 2008 Regulations under this Act debt COLLECTORS : CODE OF CONDUCT (GN R663 in GG 24867 of 16 May 2003) NOTICE IN TERMS OF SECTION 12 (5) OF THE ACT (BN 71 in GG 32293 of 5 June 2009) REGULATIONS RELATING TO debt COLLECTORS (GN R185 in GG 24351 of 7 February 2003) ACT To provide for the establishment of a council, known as the Council for debt COLLECTORS ; to provide for the exercise of control over the occupation of debt collector ; to amend the Magistrates' Courts Act, 1944, so as to legalise the recovery of fees or remuneration by registered debt COLLECTORS .

2 And to provide for matters connected therewith. 1 Definitions In this Act, unless the context otherwise indicates- 'Council' means the Council for debt COLLECTORS established by section 2; ' debt collector ' means- (a) a person, other than an attorney or his or her employee or a party to a factoring arrangement, who for reward collects debts owed to another on the latter's behalf; (b) a person who, other than a party to a factoring arrangement, in the course of his or her regular business, for reward takes over debts referred to in paragraph (a) in order to collect them for his or her own benefit.

3 (c) a person who, as an agent or employee of a person referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) or as an agent of an attorney, collects the debts on behalf of such person or attorney, excluding an employee whose duties are purely administrative, clerical or otherwise subservient to the actual occupation of debt collector ; [Para. (c) substituted by s. 10 of Act 22 of 2005.] 'Director-General' means the Director-General of the Department of Justice ; 'factoring arrangement' means an arrangement between a creditor and a financier in terms of which the creditor, in exchange for funding, either sells or offers as security, claims against his or her debtors: Provided that such claims are not bad or doubtful at the time they are so sold or offered as security: Provided further that no overdue debt or a claim for which a demand has been made, is part of such a factoring arrangement.

4 Page 1 of 13 debt COLLECTORS ACT 114 OF 199812/7/2009http://juta/ 'Minister' means the Minister of Justice ; 'person' includes a juristic person; 'prescribe' means to prescribe by regulation; 'this Act' includes any regulation or notice made or issued under this Act. [Date of commencement of s. 1: 21 January 2000.] 2 Establishment and objects of Council for debt COLLECTORS (1) There is hereby established a juristic person to be known as the Council for debt COLLECTORS . (2) The objects of the Council are to exercise control over the occupation of debt collector .

5 [Date of commencement of s. 2: 21 January 2000.] 3 Composition of Council (1) The Council shall consist of not more than 10 members appointed by the Minister. (2) The Minister shall appoint as members of the Council- (a) as chairperson, any fit and proper person with a suitable degree of skill and experience in the administration of civil law matters; (b) as members- (i) a magistrate; (ii) an attorney nominated by a representative body or bodies; (iii) at least two but not more than four debt COLLECTORS , two of whom shall be appointed after consultation with organisations representing debt COLLECTORS , who are natural persons and who have exercised the occupation of debt collector for at least three years; (iv) two persons who, in the Minister's opinion, are fit and proper persons to serve on the Council.

6 And (v) one person from nominations submitted by institutions representing consumer interests and who, in the opinion of the Minister, is a fit and proper person to serve on the Council. (3) The Council shall from time to time elect from among its members a vice-chairperson, who shall in the absence of the chairperson have all the powers and duties of the chairperson, and if neither the chairperson nor the vice-chairperson is present at a meeting of the Council, the members present shall elect a person from their own ranks to preside at that meeting.

7 (4) (a) A member of the Council, subject to paragraphs (b) , (c) , (d) and (e) , holds office for a term, not exceeding three years, determined by the Minister at the time of the member's appointment. (b) The Minister may, on good cause shown, withdraw an appointment of a member at any time. (c) A member of the Council may be re-appointed at the expiry of his or her term of Page 2 of 13 debt COLLECTORS ACT 114 OF 199812/7/2009http://juta/ (d) A member of the Council appointed in terms of this section who is a member of a committee referred to in section 15 (2)

8 , must, notwithstanding his or her subsequent vacation of office as a member of the Council, dispose of the matters he or she is seized with and, for that purpose only, is deemed to hold office as a member of the Council in respect of any period during which he or she is necessarily engaged in connection with the disposal of the matters which were not disposed of when he or she vacated office as a member of the Council. (e) A member of the Council referred to in paragraph (d) who, in the opinion of the Council, is- (i) unfit to dispose of the matters in question; or (ii) incapacitated and is not able to dispose of the matters in question due to that incapacity, may be exempted by the Council from the provisions of paragraph (d).

9 [Sub-s. (4) substituted by s. 23 of Act 66 of 2008.] (5) No person shall be appointed as a member of the Council if he or she- (a) is an unrehabilitated insolvent; (b) fails to comply or is not capable of fully complying with a judgment or order, including an order for costs, given against him or her by a court of law in a civil case; (c) in the preceding 10 years has been convicted of an offence of which violence, dishonesty, extortion or intimidation is an element; or (d) does not permanently reside in the Republic.

10 (6) A member of the Council shall vacate his or her office if he or she- (a) becomes subject to a disqualification contemplated in subsection (5); (b) becomes of unsound mind; (c) in the case of a member appointed in terms of subsection (2) (b) (iii), ceases to be a debt collector ; (d) is absent without the leave of the chairperson for more than two consecutive meetings of the Council; or (e) in the case of a member who is a debt collector , has been found guilty in terms of section 15 of improper conduct.